Bonnie Tyler Quotations

You think the Welsh are friendly, but the Irish are fabulous.

Fabulous place, Dublin is. The trouble is, you work hard and in Dublin you play hard as well.

I still love to do the old songs. I know some people don't.

I'd be happy to live till 80 as long as I was comfortable and in good health. Mind you, ask me again on the eve of my 80th birthday. Even so, I hope we don't all start living to be 120. I'm not sure I'd cope with another 60 years.

I advise wannabe singers to form a band, practise in your garage if you have to, but do as many charity or open mic shows as possible to get experience. I sang for seven years before getting a record deal, and I was already loving what I was doing. I just got lucky and got discovered.

My mum was a wonderful mother. She died, aged 80, of Alzheimer's disease, which was dreadful to watch. I remember she said to me: 'Believe in yourself because no one else is going to do it for you.' I'm sure a lot of my success is due to her words of advice.

Whenever I sing 'Total Eclipse of the Heart,' the way people sing along with me still excites me. It's one of the songs that audiences know all the lyrics to, and they sing along with me, and it makes me so happy. People also know my songs 'Holding out for a Hero' and 'Lost in France,' and this gives me so much joy on stage.

I do believe that God blessed me in life with a wonderful family, a successful career, and a loving marriage, and remain thankful for that blessing.

I've been able to help my family financially since making my first hit record. I bought my parents a house. My husband and I have a property in Portugal and one in Mumbles, Wales, and my family are always coming out to visit us. It has been fantastic to have such a successful career and to have been able to help everyone.

When I did the video for 'Holding Out For A Hero,' we filmed that on top of the Grand Canyon, and that was quite frightening. I was close to the edge, and there was a helicopter hovering about, creating a lot of wind, and I was nervous I was going to fall off.

I am very fortunate to be doing something I completely love, so it is certainly not hard to get motivated. Watching people sing along and put their hands in the air is a very powerful thing. I'm 63, but I don't feel it. I feel like I'm in my 40s. I enjoy life.

When I was in the recording studio, I needed to concentrate on what my voice was doing, which is rather difficult if you can't actually see what you are supposed to be singing.

I don't do every song that comes my way; I'm very choosy.

I've never taken drugs. My drug, I suppose, is drink. I never drink before I sing, but I do make up for it when I come off!

I havent had a big hit record in America since 1987.

I love my nice things, but I'm still the Welsh family girl.

In 1983 I'd had a number one. I'd sold 6 million copies of Total Eclipse Of The Heart all over the world.

So many people release albums before Christmas and they get lost in the Christmas rush.

The best thing about success was being able to buy my parents a house.

My father used to tape 'Top of the Pops' for me every Sunday, and I would sit in my bedroom, write down the lyrics of all of my favourite songs, and sing along. I was always singing in my bedroom with a hairbrush.

I know I express myself best singing love songs, and Jim Steinman gave me my rock style, which I have always wanted. I can express myself best putting a lot of emotion into singing rock songs.

We stay in U2's hotel. They bought a hotel, The Clarence, a nice place and it's in an area where everything's happening, so many fantastic restaurants and bars and the people are so friendly.

I never enjoyed making videos, even though the 'Total Eclipse' video was nominated for a Grammy along with the song. We lost out to the 'Billie Jean' video.

I never forget the first time I was on 'Top of the Pops', my bass player said: 'You've made it!' I did used to think, when I was younger, that I'd be on there one day.

I've been around for such a long time. My first hit record was over 20 years ago and the people who bought my records then are married now and they probably still play these records and their children like them.

I've been singing since I was 16 because I love it - I wanted to be a singer, not a star. There's a difference between wanting to be famous and wanting to sing well.

I've been successful, but I haven't had any unwanted attention. To be honest, I've never invited or courted attention. I think if you act normal, then people will treat you normally. If you go around with a big entourage all the time, you're not staying true to yourself.

My mother, who died aged 82, had Alzheimer's. Losing your memory is bad enough, but everything shuts down. You can't remember how to eat or go to the toilet. It's a terrible disease and so distressing to watch it take over someone you love.

When I was young, I used to wear a lot of wigs, and I was running on stage at a gig and tripped over and it fell off. It was in the 1970s, and Swansea were doing really well in the league, and most of the team were there. I almost died, but I picked it up, put it back on my head and carried on.

I have never gone out of fashion. And do you know why? Because I never sought it. When you don't seek it, it's always with you.

The international travelling gets harder as I get older, but when I'm performing on stage, it makes it all worth while.

Holding a menu at arm's length, peering at anything that required reading, made me feel so old.

I'm told sometimes I look like Goldie Hawn, and I get chuffed about that.

It's really fantastic because families can come to my shows and they all like it. It's really weird.

My mother was the only one who encouraged and inspired me for singing. She was singing all the time in the house, playing records also.

We all have a great time. And then I go to bed, get up and do it all over again. I like my life.

When I tour with the new album, I still do the classics, and I love the atmosphere it creates with the whole audience singing along.

Every country I've had different hit records, so we have to change the set to fit the country.

Every time I release an album my old record company releases another one.

I am itching like hell to play America because I know that if I did the show over there, they would love it.

I collect traditional Aubusson tapestries that you can hang on a wall. The last lot I bought were from an antiques fair in London.

I lost dozens of pairs of expensive glasses because I'd put them down and then not be able to find them again.

I love eyeshadow, blushers, and eyelashes with lots of black liquid eyeliner.

I love watching movies with happy endings or anything with Steve Martin or stuff like that.

I remember when the Atkins diet arrived; I lost 16 lb in the first month, but when I stopped, it all went back on again.

I started singing when I was 18 and landed my first record deal with RCA when I was 26 after a lot of grafting singing in pubs and clubs.

I'm always buying nice watches for my husband - Bentley Breitlings.

I'm always late to bed - usually after midnight - but then I sleep for around ten hours.

My voice was left with its husky sound after surgery on large vocal nodules.

I love Tina Turner. I'm one of Tina Turner's biggest fans. Tina Turner was a big influence on me to become a singer. A role model and in a way she gave me back my confidence in choosing my material.

I would love to do a Bond song, and I could have done a Bond song: I was offered a Bond theme, but I turned it down because I didn't like the song. But as it turned out, I was right anyway because the song was the only Bond theme that never became a hit, so I'm glad I wasn't associated with that!

We were brought up Protestant, and I went to church three times a day on a Sunday. My parents weren't Bible-bashers, but we all have a strong belief in God and a strong faith. We had a huge garden; our house was a bit like a scene from 'The Good Life.' I think Mam and Dad had it really hard, bringing up a big family on very little.

Alzheimer's is a horrible thing. Some people are naive about it. They think, 'Oh it's just your memory,' but my mother was in terrible pain. Your body closes down. She didn't know if she'd eaten or if she wanted to eat. She couldn't remember how to walk. Towards the end, she didn't know us. It came gradually, then it got worse.

I am going to keep on singing. I have no intention of retiring. Actually, I always wonder whether people know my songs in the different countries I visit. I feel nervous over whether they will sing along with me or not.

I suppose I don't have to work, but I do love working. I class myself as a working-class girl, and I've never stopped working. When I'm offered shows here, there and the other, I do an awful lot because I feel other people would love to be offered what I'm offered; who am I to say no? I'm definitely working class, and I always will be.

I used to carry a bag of records down to my friend's house every Friday, and we'd sit down and play all the records I loved, and we'd look at the album covers.

I was born Gaynor Hopkins, one of seven children. My mum, Elsie, and dad, Glyndwr, always said they had seven children, although my sister Paulene was stillborn.

I went to all the shops in the village looking for work. I didn't have any qualifications. I ended up working in a grocery shop for about a year and then went to a confectioner, where I earned three pounds 10 shillings. I gave the money to my mother and father, but I also managed to save five shillings a week.

I've got my feet on the ground because I've got a lovely family waiting for me when I get home, even though they're not my flesh and blood. I haven't got children. That's my only regret, I suppose.

It's no good singing if you just want to be a pop star; you've got to work at it and do it for the love for it, not because you think it will make you famous.

When you're in the music business, every day is the same. If you work 9 to 5, you can't wait for the weekend, but in the music business, you don't know one day from the next. It's always the weekend.

When I do a T.V. show, I hear all these artists in their dressing rooms doing scales - I've never done it because I've never had voice training. What I do to prepare is get in my car and sing along to the radio for about 20 minutes.

Holding out for a hero 'til the end of the night!

Where have all the good men gone, and where are all the gods? Where's the street-wise Hercules, to fight the rising odds?

I need a hero, I'm holding out for at hero 'till the end of the night He's gotta be strong and he's gotta be fast And he's gotta be fresh from the fight I need a hero, I'm holding out for a hero 'till the morning light He's gotta be sure and it's gotta be soon And he's gotta be larger than life, larger than life

They say that your first love never dies. You can put out the flames, but not the fire.

Once upon a time I was falling in love, now I'm only falling apart.

I'm always an outsider in that group. I don't drink coffee and when they get together, it's often over a beer. There is this sense that I am different from the group.

It ain't wise to need someone -- As much as I depended on you.

The way we work is to make sure you are picking the right songs. You do 12 rough demos and you only pick six songs out of that to start with.

It's a heartacheNothing but a heartacheHits you when it's too lateHits you when you're down

It's a heartache Nothing but a heartache Hits you when it's too late Hits you when you're down

Once upon a time I was falling in love but now I'm only falling apart. There's nothing I can do, a total eclipse of the heart.